Samsung’s One UI 7 software included updates for one killer feature that has multiple uses: the Now Bar. From showing notifications and currently playing music on your lock screen, to a recent integration with Google Maps, the pill-shaped bar at the bottom of the screen has been a handy answer to Apple’s Dynamic Island.
Now, it seems that the Now Bar is set to become even more useful in the upcoming Samsung One UI 8 update, as a leaked image and video of an early version of the software show new features for the bar. Shared by X user Topraks9plus, and highlighted by Android Authority, the video shows the new functions of the lockscreen widget:
One UI 8 update adds phone calls to Now bar 🌟#OneUI8 #NowBar pic.twitter.com/Demcw5yJ8o
The video shows a user flicking through options on the Now Bar, including seeing the current Do Not Disturb mode, interacting with music controls, seeing phone calls, and seeing upcoming calendar events. The phone call feature is new, and it allows you to see the name of the contact you are on a call with and the call duration. The Do Not Disturb notification is new as well.
As well as new functions for the Now Bar, Samsung is also working on fixing the Now bar for Z Flip devices. The Now Bar is currently only visible on the internal screen on the Samsung Z Flip, which severely limits its usefulness. But a previous leak showed the Now Bar running on the current screen of a Z Flip 5 or 6 instead, which would be much more useful. That fix is expected to be part of One UI 8 as well.
Hopefully users won’t have to wait too long for One UI 8, especially given the criticism of the One UI 7 release and some of the bugs it contained. There is even a rumor that Samsung could jump straight from One UI 7.0 to One UI 8.0, given how behind it is on its releases.
Two new highly requested iCloud plugins just got added to ChatGPT, giving people who rely on Apple’s Mail and Calendar services a way to search emails, check appointments, and manage their schedules directly through the chatbot.
The integration is rolling out to all ChatGPT plans, including the free tier. You can access it on the web, desktop, and iOS.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.
Samsung’s scandal over its Game Optimizing Service, or GOS, has returned with a bill attached. South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission has tentatively fined the company 20.1 billion won, or about $15.1 million, over gaming claims made for the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S22, and Tab S8.
The regulator says Samsung promoted the devices as gaming powerhouses without disclosing that GOS placed preset CPU and GPU limits on certain demanding games. Samsung disputes that conclusion, calling GOS a legitimate way to manage heat.